Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing in Professional Services
Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing in Professional Services
In recent weeks, Lloyds of London have put an end to decades long culture of drinking during office hours.
Anyone deemed to under the influence of alcohol or drugs will not be allowed to enter the building. Passes will be confiscated from those suspected of having alcohol or illegal substances in their system, this could lead to action from human resources and/or disciplinary action.
A boozy culture is no longer acceptable in the modern working world. This is part of a number of new measures introduced by John Neal, the newly appointed CEO of Lloyds, looking to change the organisation. It is reported the measures surrounding alcohol and drugs has come on the back of a number of sexual harassment cases/ allegations.
The drinking culture in the accountancy, finance, insurance and legal professions in the City has been well known for years. This has been compounded by the increase in the prevalence of drugs.
Should Drug and Alcohol testing be adopted across professional services?
Lloyds of London are set to provide security guards with the responsibility of policing those entering the building, but it is not always easy to identify those staff who have had a drink or taken illicit drugs.
The introduction of random as well as ‘for cause’ drug and alcohol testing is an easy method to support this new policy. The simple tests can produce a result in a short period and will act as a deterrent.
Pre-employment testing can help professional services businesses to prevent those with drink and drug problems from entering the business.
What are the benefits for professional services introducing Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing?
Introducing random, for cause and pre-employment testing will reduce the risk to team members and damaging client relationships.
The health and wellbeing of your staff ought to be paramount, Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing can help you identify people that may have problems. This provides you with the opportunity to help and support them as well protecting other staff members and your business’s reputation.
Can your team really produce the best quality work after a few drinks at lunchtime? Removing the impact of drink and drugs in the office will increase productivity and the quality of work which ultimately will improve the bottom line.
Organisations need to be seen by all stakeholders as an upstanding employer and business that both addresses and mitigates against the potential negative impact on the organisation brought about by employees who misuse drugs or alcohol